How Ted Nugent Would Solve The Government Shutdown

Nugent's Message For Obama And Reid: "Eat Me!"

National Rifle Association board member and conservative columnist Ted Nugent claimed on a Florida radio station that the federal government shutdown could be resolved if the United States were "run like the Nugent household."

He also suggested that a single person could do a better job than 5,000 federal employees and revived his previous claim that members of the military are committing suicide at a record rate because President Obama is "the enemy of the country."

Asked how he would resolve the government shut down during his October 14 appearance on The Gater 98.7, Nugent said, "I celebrate that they're shut down because Fedzilla is a bloated monster."

Noting that his previous "threat" to run for president is "alive and well," Nugent added, "I would love to see America run like the Nugent household. You get up early, you maximize your productivity, you be the best that you can be, you live within your means, you save for a rainy day and you don't be some gluttonous, slovenly, criminal, wasteful paycheck fire-torching bastard like most of the people in politics today."

The right-wing media often claims that the government budget could be operated like a household budget, even though the comparison is inept because, among other reasons, the federal government is able to roll over debt and issue its own currency. As former Labor Secretary Robert Reich noted, "Those who analogize the federal budget to a family's budget must know nothing about either."

During his rant, Nugent also blamed "liberal Democrats" for requesting funding for the government while "refus[ing] to be accountable," and said his message to President Obama and Sen. Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) is, "Eat me!"

Nugent revisited previous controversies during his radio appearance, including his remarks on the George Zimmerman trial and his claim that President Obama is causing veterans to commit suicide at record rates.

In April, Nugent claimed on conspiracy theorist Alex Jones' radio show that veteran suicides are occurring at a staggering rate because Obama "violates the Constitution." During his October 14 appearance on The Gater, Nugent took his claim a step further, stating, "[W]hen you've got leadership that is the enemy of America, you've got the heroes of the U.S. military committing suicide at record numbers because their commander-in-chief is the enemy of the country."

Nugent also claimed that Obama and Attorney General Eric Holder are both racists because of their involvement in the George Zimmerman trial, echoing a previous claim he made after making racially charged comments following Zimmerman's acquittal. After Zimmerman was acquitted of second-degree murder charges for fatally shooting unarmed Florida teenager Trayvon Martin, Nugent referred to Martin as a "dope smoking, racist gangsta wannabe." He also claimed that African-Americans could solve "the black problem" if they just put their "heart and soul into being honest, law-abiding, [and] delivering excellence at every move in your life." During a separate radio interview, he suggested that African-Americans be profiled like a dangerous breed of dog.

From his Gater 98.7 appearance:

NUGENT: The threat of me running for public office is alive and well because obviously our government has been overtaken by gangsters and America-haters. I mean we have a liar for a president, you know the president of the United States is a racist. You're down there in Florida, you saw what a racist the president and the attorney general is, I mean these guys turned this George Zimmerman Trayvon Martin incident into a racial escapade.

I mean it's just mindboggling, foolish and indecent and racist. So when you've got leadership that is the enemy of America, you've got the heroes of the U.S. military committing suicide at record numbers because their commander-in-chief is the enemy of the country. I mean it's so ugly right now, you got a bunch of pimps whores and welfare brats running our government. To think they do not have to be accountable to their boss, we the people, and that when they run out of money they can force us to just give them more credit, you have got to be kidding me, Chad.

That being said, I would love to see America run like the Nugent household. You get up early, you maximize your productivity, you be the best that you can be, you live within your means, you save for a rainy day and you don't be some gluttonous, slovenly, criminal, wasteful paycheck fire-torching bastard like most of the people in politics today. So the threat is alive and well.

CHAD TYSON, HOST: So we're two weeks into the government shutdown now, the debt ceiling deadline this Thursday. How does Ted Nugent fix that whole mess?

NUGENT: Well number one, I celebrate that they're shut down because Fedzilla is a bloated monster. I would recommend and I think an honest review of the federal government would conclude the same that I have, and other thinking, caring people who understand the U.S. Constitution and how to run a household or how to run a business. That for every federal employee, let's put it this way, for every 5,000 federal employees, I could hire one person to do a better job. It is so wasteful. It's engineered obsolescence, it's engineered redundancy. The whole battle cry of the federal government is waste, corruption, fraud, abuse of power. So I'm glad it's shutdown. All you have to do is listen to the liberal Democrats and they'll try to tell you that we the people better shut up and give them more money to spend even though they refuse to be accountable. Chad, you've got to be kidding me. You can't run a family like that, you can't run a business like that. But Fedzilla is convinced they can operate with impunity. And I have a message for Harry Reid and the president, "Eat Me!"

FOLLOW US ›››

TimothyJohnson
›››

Timothy Johnson is a guns and public safety researcher at Media Matters, having previously spent time at the Brady Center to Prevent Gun Violence Legal Action Project and the Coalition to Stop Gun Violence. He is a graduate of The George Washington University.